Red Dragon of Avalon
by Rogue Roleplayer
Summary: A tale of a young dragon's quest. Part of my Isle of Avalon series.
1. Chapter 1

Rhosyn Drysi is not much of a name for a red dragon. They say there is power in a name. How much power can there be in a rose and a thorn? Trust me, not much. The old sorcerer who so named me obviously had a warped sense of humor. I came by my name when the old wizened man had held me carefully if not cautiously in the palm of his gnarled hand. According to that old man, nothing is quite as painful as a newly hatched, hungry baby dragon's bite. I had sunk sharp teeth deeply into the meaty flesh of his thumb. (He carries the scar to this day) The sorcerer had likened the drops of rose-red blood to my ruby coloring and my small needle-like teeth to that of thorns. Aside from the ridiculous name, I am a creature of great power.

The old wizard was kind and did not mistreat me. He taught me the language of man. With him I learned the meaning of respect and honor. Though that lesson came hard and much to late. Each day I would hunt, taking down deer so the old man and I could feast. With me he never knew hunger. Our abode was a large cave high up on a mountain, above the Avalon forest. He was the only human I knew. In my own way I loved the old man, but there were times I felt a strangeness when I looked at him, staring into his blue eyes I sometimes wondered if he saw the flame of something wild and unpredictable within my own crimson eyes. I wondered if he could sense my desire to be with others of my kind.

I was mostly content with the old man. If only whatever it was that called to me would leave me be… I could be content with the life I had. The old man was good to me and yet, it was not enough for me; I wanted my freedom. With unfurled sixty foot wings, I soared high above the mountain top, riding the air currents. The warmth of the sun felt good against my back. The ruby red scales sparkled in the light of the sun. I could see the emerald lushness of the forest below and beyond the forest, stretched a white beach, along that beach the blue sea was endless. I had promised to hunt within the boundaries the old man had set, to go no further, ever. Without a second thought, I broke my word. If I could only have known then that it would break my heart as well.

Enjoying my mid-meal in a grassy field, my sharp teeth tore into the soft underbelly of the sheep, swallowing the creature whole in a bite or two. When suddenly an arrow flew past my head, another struck deep within my left shoulder, whilst a third bounced off of the armour plating on my neck. Three men were flinging arrows, shouting at me. They called me a monster, a beast, a devil. Oh, how their words wounded my pride. A rage flew up and out, fire soared. When I left that field, I left behind the charred bones of those frightened, angry men. I also left behind a small piece of myself. What had passed for human. Upon my return the old man knew what I had done.

He cast a spell, a binding, that would change my dragon life forever. To protect me from myself, to teach me what it truly meant to be human, he made me a human. By day I was a human girl and took my natural form at night. He healed my wound but broke my heart. Not a week had passed when one morning the old man did not awake as he normally would do so. I prepared his body and did the things that had to be done. When night fell I took flight, never looking back. Somewhere in Avalon there had to be a sorcerer who could set things right. I was born dragon and had dragon magic of my own, perhaps a barter could be exchanged. And so my quest began.


	2. Chapter 2

The trickle of sea water flowing across the cave's gravelly floor felt rather good to the girl as she walked barefooted; the cave's walls had large veins of whitish quartz running through them. Light from the entrance of the cave, as it crept it's way through the murky depths, made the cave walls look rather eerie. The scent of the sea salt mixing with the cloying odor of decaying sea creatures was pervasive inside of this extraordinary and mysterious place. Gradually, the elevation of the passage she followed began to rise above sea level, opening up into a large chamber, unlike any chamber the girl had seen before. The glow cast from the crystal walls illuminated the darkest corners of the chamber. Her indrawn breath was the only sound that was heard in the hushed, silent place. She had found her way back home.

The cavernous chamber was vast. The perimenter reached several hundred feet in height and width. A damp chill permeated the entire area. In the center, a large hoard of vibrant ores; blood-red rubies, diamonds, silver, and the glitter of gold shone brightly beneath layers upon layers of velvet and satin cloth. Gazing upon the wondrous rarity, her golden eyes sparkled with delight. As if in a trance, she gravitated toward the treasured gems. Climbing to the top of the mound, she laid on her side, pulling her slender legs up to her stomach as she closed her eyes. She was thankful to be home once again. Her thoughts drifted back to a previous cave, one located on the top of a mountain. The only true home she had known, almost the span of her life and had shared with an elderly mage. The girl's breathing slowed as she was lulled into a calm sleep.

Her senses came alive as she awoke from her nap. Stretching, she sat up, swinging her legs over the side of the bed. She jumped down, lightly landing on the rock floor's smoothed surface. Glancing around the silent chamber, she sighed in exasperation at herself, her thoughts bewildered. Why had she bothered to seek this place? Like a migrating bird, she had instictively returned to the place of her beginning. Did she actually expect to find her mother? She had known better. The elderly mage who had raised her, told her long ago how he had witnessed her dam being slain by men, of his search for the dragon lair. The girl laughed softly, her derisive laughter filled the emptiness within the lair, spreading to every corner. Discerning that time was growing short, she knew she must hurry. What she so desparately sought would not be found here.

Following the rocky seashore, her head bent downward, she watched with interest as the wave crashed ashore, tumbling the tiny broken shells. She enjoyed the insistent pull of the tide as it tugged around her ankles. Seagulls flying by, screamed out as if scolding her. She ignored the pesty garbage scavengers. Her heart skipped a beat. She sensed what was to come. Her steps stilled, lifting the hated woolen dress over her head, she released, giving the despised cloth to the relentless seabreeze. Beyond impossibly blue water, a bright golden sun sets over the ocean's horizon, coloring the horizon red. Her senses were sharp and focused. She allowed the change that she so anxiously longed for, to overcome her. Where once a young girl stood, slender and golden, her long locks of vivid red hair whipped to and fro by the strong breeze, a different manner of creature took form.

The red dragon was thirsty. Her flight had been a few hours long and she now felt the need to satisfy her thirst. She had already fed earlier tonight, satisfying her hunger on two vacuous young doe and a fawn that she had caught in a small clearing. Gliding low above the treetops, the dragon followed the path of a river. Her crimsom reptilian eyes swiftly scanned the river bank for dangerous creatures, namely man. Not sighting anything in the immediate vicinity to cause her alarm, the massive dragon rapidly descended. Due to her love of speed and risk, the powerful wings spread at the last possible moment, hovering briefly, before she touched down on the bank of the river. The soft bank gave slightly beneath her weight, absorbing most of the impact. Her steps were slightly ungainly. The ruby red scales lightly slid over each other, so when she walked to the river edge, a soft scraping sound was heard. She drank her fill.

Entering the river, she made her scales stand on end for washing. She enjoyed the sensation of the cool river water as it ran in between the scales and onto her sensitive skin, the large animal cooled down quickly. Sensing an unfamiliar presence, one she had failed to detect while in flight, the dragon smoothed her scales, closing them tightly in order to protect her from an unseen danger. Lumbering out of the water, she shook herself violently; water droplets flew outward in all directions. Her sense of alarm was not heightened; nothing was directly attacking her. Usually, she would run then jump in the air and fly off, avoiding the attacker. More curious than alarmed, she tucked the wings tightly against her body and entered into the forest. The tender young saplings and lower branches of over-hanging trees broke as the dragon moved between the much larger, older trees. Her cautious, ungainly gait came to a standstill. A soft snuffling sound was heard as the nostrils took in the scents upon the air. She took another step.

The silence was almost palpable as the perceptible sound of the nocturnal inhabitants stirring about fell quiet. The critters' highly developed senses of hearing and smell alerted them to the danger that had invaded the woodland. Only the audible sharp crack of the occasional tree limb snapping and the soft thud of a branch as it came to rest upon the thick mat of decayed leaves on the forest floor was heard. The silence had taken on an ominous overtone, darkening the atmosphere of the forest. The beast paused her steps momentarily as she inhaled deeply; the pungent odours of small wild creatures huddled, frozen in fear, was completely ignored. They held none to little interest for her. It was the strong scent of a vastly different kind of creature that caused a small amount of alarm within the dragon.

Her race was an ancient and highly intelligent one, though many of her kind were now long gone from this world. She knew that her kind, the red dragons lived in seclusion far from man and humanities lust of the wars and the power stuggles that she could not understand. Few of her kind did understand man and so they lived out their lives secluded on the highest reaches of mountaintops or hidden caves scattered along treacherous coasts that were out of the sight of man. She had never known her own kind, but knew instinctively that one day she would have to seek out the company of the red dragons. She froze in place as once again the human scent assulted her senses. The dragon wondered if perhaps she should withdraw and yet, she wondered what if this human was the one she sought; the one who could help her. Quickly making up her mind, she cautiously advanced once more through the forest.

The only human she had known was the old mage who had found her starving and alone. He had taken her to the highest mountain and made a home with her. He taught her the language of man and then betrayed her; cursing her by day with the body and mind of a human girl. The dragon had sulked and stirred by anger at what the old man had done; glowered at the one who had always been kind to her. She remembered well the sadness within the mages eyes as she silently hated him. When the change came on and she turned into that human girl, she felt shocked to her very core. Fate was indeed cruel as the dragon soon found out. The mage had died the day after he had cursed her, leaving her alone and bewildered. Overwhelmed by strange human emotions, the girl felt guilt, uncertainty and sorrow at his passing.

A dragon's senses are much more sensitive than that of many beasts. The scent was strange and she could read the human's fear. Exhaling her breath, a sulferous odor permeated the air around the beast. Small spits of flame exploded briefly, the small fiery balls short lived. With her head lowered, the dragon took another deliberate cautious step forward. Her large reptilian eyes watchful and wary as she once again began slow-moving through the wooded area.


End file.
